I personally think that this interview process and oral history assignment was a great way to connect with my father more. Though I’m the daughter that asks my parents the most questions about their pasts, there was still so much I didn’t know about them. From sweeping the streets during the saemaul undong to finishing his research in the United States, there was a lot to learn about his experiences at different phases of his life.
I was not incredibly amused at the idea of this project, since I was imagining the awkward encounter it would cause. The idea of sitting down at the dinner table with my dad asking personal questions about his past sounded embarrassing. But there I was, in March, at the dinner table, asking him personal questions about his past. We pushed it off for a while until the end of break, and it even occurred after I had a crying fit about my life at Colby. It started off awkward and we laughed here and there, but the interview was successful and I got to know a lot more about my dad than if this project did not exist. I didn’t know the details of the protests he participated in, I didn’t know about his childhood friends, I didn’t know about the reason he stayed in the United States, and I didn’t know about his life as a postdoc. I knew he was an incredibly accomplished person but I’ve gained more respect for him. We have our differences and he makes me cry from time to time, but he’s my role model and someone I strive to become.
For the actual project itself, I think it was a great chance for me to push myself to understand the historical background of his stories, since I presented his past during the CLAS presentation. I didn’t want it to just be a timeline of his life, since I don’t think that would be very interesting or telling to my audience; if they wanted his timeline they could probably go to his website. Putting it into the context of history was more engaging in terms of the presentation, and I hope that it was more interesting for me listeners as well.
—Hannah Junn on her oral history with Eunsung Junn